Thierry Henry
Doha, Qatar: Thierry Henry, the legendary French football coach and former player, recently shared insights into the intersection of football and luxury during an interview with The Peninsula. The manager of the France national under-21 team is one of the faces for recently-concluded Doha Jewellery & Watches Exhibition (DJWE) .
Henry drew parallels between the worlds of football and luxury watches and jewellry, emphasising the commonalities in dedication, craftsmanship, and storytelling.
In Henry’s view, both football and luxury craftsmanship require relentless dedication and daily commitment to honing one’s skills. He highlighted the importance of longevity in both fields, noting the challenges athletes face in maintaining peak performance over time. Just as craftsmen continually reinvent their creations, athletes must constantly evolve to stay successful.
The essence of inspiring and transcending people through storytelling is another aspect Henry stressed. Whether it’s through a goal on the field or a meticulously crafted timepiece, there must be a compelling narrative that resonates with people. Henry stressed the significance of a personal touch and the ability to evoke emotion, noting that beyond economic considerations, there must be something that truly attracts individuals.
“To be successful, you have to reinvent yourself, and to create new pieces or the time, imagination, coming, think, how do you grab people, you know I always say it’s very important to inspire people, how you transcend people, and what do you transmit, and I think that’s sometimes people recognise themselves if it’s an athlete, pearl, jewellery or watch, what it is – there needs to be a story behind it.”
Ultimately, Henry underscored the importance of inspiration, transmission, and transcendence in both football and luxury craftsmanship, noting the power of storytelling to create meaningful connections with people.
“I think ultimately, that’s what it is – inspire, transmit, transcend, it’s what makes someone come, and the story behind it, what people can relate, it’s like more of a personal touch – it is, because at one point what is the difference?
You know economically at times it’s the same price, the beauty, there’s gotta be something that attract you.” Meanwhile, he also said that being one of the faces of the DJWE made him reflect and know more about the culture of Qatar.
“Above all the jewellery and everything, and obviously people coming together, you get the story, it’s also for me give me the opportunity to know the history of the country cause I knew of it couple of lines but don’t really know, you know the World Cup was here, people say about it, I came so there’s more than that, there was a struggle here, when the pearl trade wasn’t happening anymore, then [the people then] came back to their feet – for me, it was an eye opener and if it wasn’t for DJWE then I wouldn’t have known. The power of it, my knowledge made a bit wider, I think it’s very important.”
